English

Preposition

anent

1. (archaic) Concerning, with regard to, about, in respect to, as to, insofar as, inasmuch as
   • 1922, James Joyce, Ulysses, chapter 16,

     Mr Bloom and Stephen entered the cabman’s shelter, an unpretentious wooden structure, where, prior to then, he had rarely, if ever, been before; the former having previously whispered to the latter a few hints anent the keeper of it […]

   • 1955, Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita, chapter 11,

     The wings of the driver's Marlenesque nose shone, having shed or burned up their ration of powder, and she kept up an elegant monologue anent the local traffic […]

   • 1984, New York Times,

     This question remains a vital consideration anent the debate over the possibility of limiting nuclear war to military objectives, […]

   • 2015, LT Wolf, The World King (fiction), ISBN 978-1-312-37454-6:

     The invasion of privacy anent banking and financial activities was mainly an outcome of the income tax and the Drug War

2. (obsolete) In the opinion or judgment of
3. (obsolete) Against, in front of, fronting; before; opposite; over against, on the other side

   • ... if Painter did ever abide in the old bark mill said to be anent his brother's freehold. — R.T. Smith, Ina Grove, The Virginia Quarterly Review, Vol. 81, Iss. 4; pg. 230, 25 pgs, 2005

4. (obsolete) In a line with; side by side with; on a level with.

References

• Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

Scots

Etymology

From Middle English anent, anempt ‎(“insofar as, inasmuch as, in comparison with, with respect to, as regards, concerning, in the opinion or judgment of; next to, close to, up to, near, adjoining, across from, over against, facing”), from Old English onemn ‎(“by; near”); compare Dutch neven, German neben.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [əˈnɛnt]
• (Mid Northern Scots) IPA^(key): [əˈnænt]

Preposition

anent

1. in a line with, on a level with, alongside of
2. (of persons) before the face of, in the presence of
3. (of position) fronting, opposite, over against
4. concerning, about

Derived terms

• foreanent ‎(“over against, opposite to; on the opposite side”)
• hereanent ‎(“concerning”)
• thareanent ‎(“the matter already mentioned, relating to what has been said above”)

Adverb

anent ‎(not comparable)

1. in front, opposite